Solidus
by PhantomInvader
Summary: Total AU. Dash Baxter had no idea how he ended up in this mysterious city, or how he got caught up with the resistance planning to overthrow its dictator, or how a young thief somehow managed to convince him to help her bust her friends out of jail.
1. Chapter 1

**This was originally going to be exclusively on my dA after this chapter was posted in my oneshot collection but...almost nobody comments on it there (not that I don't deeply love the people who do), and I'm a feedback whore**.

**This is the sort of crossover I do. It's never truly a crossover with me, you know that - it's a fusion of the two mediums with changes made by me. I've been calling them fusions lately. This is a fusion of Danny Phantom and the video game Bioshock. This is why it is not it the crossover section - I don't think it truly counts. It's more like an AU.  
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**Because it's fucking awesome, that's why.**

**I already have the first three chapters written, and since people reading this must have already read this chapter in my oneshot collection, I'll have the second one up soon. The second one is also on dA, but if you had read that_ you would have been nice and commented on it_-**

**...okay. Get over it, Phanny.**

**Chapter one of Solidus! A fusion of Bioshock and DP, both of which I do not own!  
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**-Phanny**

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><p>Where was he?<p>

Dash Baxter sat up - something he regretted as he was struck with a wave of pain in his head. The back of his skull throbbed like he had been hit - which, he reminded himself, he most likely had.

The young man looked around, his eyes adjusting to the darkness. There was a faint green glow all around him, but he was in an enclosed space. Outside one of the glass walls he saw an otherworldly shade of green and nothing more, save for a few dark spots here and there.

Looking around some more, Dash saw various signs and posters, and even though he was afraid to move in this place, he walked towards each of them and attempted to make out the words.

_Down with Masters!_

_WE ARE OUR OWN PEOPLE!_

_Corruption has struck! THIS IS THE LAST STRAW!_

Some of the signs were on the ground, and Dash realized with horror that some were covered with spots of blood and another mysterious green substance that he couldn't identify. What had happened here?

Dash walked forward, feeling the need to get away from where he currently was, even though he had no idea whether or not something worse awaited him.

Dash's foot struck something on the ground, and he looked at his feet. A large tape recorder lay not far away from where he was standing, undoubtedly the thing he had accidentally kicked. A small LED screen displayed a title and what he assumed would be the maker of the recording.

"Vlad Masters: A Message to the People…" Dash muttered, reading it aloud. He pressed play. An aged, sophisticated male voice began to emit from the object, and Dash listened.

"_My loyal citizens of Solidus, I'm afraid I must inform you of some necessary changes. I have heard many notices of a so-called 'resistance' hiding among our people, plotting to take me down. Well, I can't allow my people to just flounder without a leader, so measure must be put in place. A curfew of seven o'clock is in place - any wandering through our town after that is considered suspicious activity, and the perpetrator will be subject to questioning. The Gatherers will be under constant supervision, do not approach the Gatherers. Their protectors are authorized to use force. Security cameras will run at all times. Searches of homes are allowed. _

_My people, there are necessary measures. The only thing I need to relieve these measures is your loyalty, please show me I have that at least…"_

Dash had never been so confused in his life-

A crackling sound took over the recorder, and a younger male voice began to play.

"_Haha…Glad Tucker showed me how to tape over that load of bullshit…and I do mean that. This guy's so full of it. Listen here, Masters - yeah, I got a little hide out, and a group of friends doin' what we need to survive in the hellhole - but let me make one thing perfectly clear: I ain't planning' no revolution. My family and I want out, and we'll find a way. The only time you'd need to worry is if you try to stand in my way, old man…I ain't a violent kid by nature, but you mess with Danny Fenton, sir, then you get what you deserve."_

Dash couldn't decide which recording was worse - what was wrong with these people? What had happened in this place?

Dash put the tape recorder down, and he idly put his hands into his coat pockets as he continued to walk. Or at least, he began to walk…

Dash pulled out a folded piece of paper from his jacket pocket - something he was sure hadn't been there before. He unfolded it and struggled to read it in the faint light around him.

_Watch out for the ghosts, head to the building shaped like a skull and go out the back, don't get caught._

_-S.M. _

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><p><strong>I love audio diaries. They're fun.<br>**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter two.**

**My little-known OC Thursday is in here. She's a whore.**

**Reviewers: *groan***

**Yeah, there will be a few OCs in here. There aren't enough canon characters to do what I want.**

**-Phanny**

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><p>Dash had to ask himself: <em>"why are you following the instructions of a note from someone you don't know to wander around in a dangerous place you've never seen before?"<em>

He also had to answer himself: _"I don't know."_

Really, he didn't quite understand. It was nice to have some sort of goal, though, something to do in this place. Something to focus on instead of his surroundings.

Dash couldn't help but notice a few things, however.

Even though he was sure this place wasn't underwater, he could hear dripping noises. He continued to see traces of a glowing green substance on the ground every now and then. He swore he could hear whispering, but he saw no one.

"I can see why that kid wants to get out of here so badly…" Dash muttered to himself.

"Wait." Dash stopped in his tracks when he heard a quiet, distorted voice from in front of him. He was faced with a pair of glowing eyes, but to his surprise he saw no evil or malicious intent in them. Just a subdued curiosity.

"Is it someone new?" The being muttered to itself. The voice sounded robotic, or like two separate voices mixed together. Something about the way it spoke told him it was alive and real, but the voice made it sound like some inhuman creation. Maybe it was both.

The glowing-eyed figure stepped forward, and Dash was shocked to see that it - or _him_, as he now saw - looked just like a normal teenager, save for the giant needle he carried almost as an extension of his left arm. His hair was black as pitch from what Dash could see, but he didn't know if it was natural or if it was just the light - or lack thereof.

"He still breathes," the boy muttered to…

_'What the hell is that?'_

Dash's thoughts went crazy at the sight of an eight foot tall shadow behind the boy, making a guttural growling sound in response.

"Let's go this way," the boy continued, waving the needle in another direction, "we will check on him later. I can smell something…"

Dash stayed frozen to the spot until he was sure the boy and his shadow-thing were long gone.

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><p>"Building that looks like a skull…" Dash muttered to himself, reading the note again for good measure. He continued walking, and he unfortunately forgot to look where his feet were going yet again, and he almost tripped over…a syringe?<p>

A long, very painful looking needle was filled with the eerie green substance he had been seeing all over the place. Next to it was another tape recorder, and Dash picked it up - this was becoming habit.

He looked at the tiny LED screen - "Thursday Hartley: Double Standards." Dash pressed play, and a husky female voice began to emit from the tape recorder.

_"You know what? I'm sick of this nonsense - Billy keeps on shootin' up that Ectoplasm every chance he gets, even when we're…doing the deed, you know? But when I want to do it - 'it's unladylike.' Shit, if I wanted to be treated like a lesser being, I wouldn't charge for the work I do. Yes, it is work. Some of it's more of a chore than others, some of these people are hideous, let me tell you. Maybe if I had a little bit of the Green on me, things would be more exciting."_

It seemed like with every recording Dash heard, the more confused he got. He now knew that this green substance was called Ectoplasm, but what exactly did it do? Should he leave the needle where he had found it, or did he take it with him should he actually find out what it did?

Dash did the latter, finding a small satchel on the ground (slightly damp, but better than nothing) to carry it in. He couldn't put it in his pocket, he'd stick himself within minutes.

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><p>Dash's curiosity about Solidus only grew as he walked through the place. He was looking all over, hoping to find some sort of map, but he just couldn't stop eyeing all of the old buildings that he was sure were once beautiful.<p>

"Masters' Industries," "Benson's Fine Imports," and "Tommy's Bar & Diner" were a few of the dimly lit signs he saw, along with an ad for a "Circus Gothika - Where The Monstrous Become The Stars!"

"A circus, huh…?" Dash trailed off, and there was a loud crash from behind him.

"Who's there?"

Dash instantly froze, as if that would help him any.

"I can see you, boy!" The gruff male voice said from behind him. Dash still didn't move - he couldn't. He heard footsteps behind him drawing closer. He had never felt so terrified by something he couldn't see.

"Come on," the voice was right by his ear, and Dash finally jumped, backing away from the source - a gaunt, frail looking man - his skin looked too big for him, as did his clothes. "You have it."

"What…?"

"The Green, boy! You have it!"

Green? Dash's first thought was money, but then he remembered the audio diary he had just heard. They called Ectoplasm "The Green."

"I can smell it on you…" The man came closer, and Dash felt himself reaching into the bag and digging out the needle he had found. He had no idea what this stuff did, or what this guy would do to him if he didn't get it. He held out the needle, the syringe filled with glowing green fluid, and the man snatched it up immediately. Without a second thought, he plunged the tip into the veins in his wrist, and Dash cringed.

What happened next astounded him. The man seemed to almost grow into his body, his skin being stretched taught over his bones, muscle growing, and he bulked up almost immediately. At the end of this bizarre transformation, the unknown man wall tall enough and muscular enough to even intimidate Dash, who was by no means a skinny young school boy.

Without a word, the man walked away, dropping the now empty syringe on the ground. The man cupped his hand and blasted a startling green beam out of it, breaking open a previously locked door, and idly whistled as he continued on, as though the confrontation had never occurred.

Dash looked down at the empty syringe, as thought it might come up and bite him. Had that…had that really happened?

Well, at least now he knew what it did.


	3. Chapter 3

**And this right here is the chapter no one has seen before. I enjoyed this one. It feels like something is actually happening.**

**I love writing Sam as a quirky little screw-up. I thought she got a little too know-it-all-ish in the final season. I love her anyway.**

**-Phanny**

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><p>The building that looked like a skull was hidden behind much larger structures, so Dash felt lucky that he had found it at all. It somehow managed to look menacing, like it was alive and staring him down, daring him to go closer. After some hesitation, he did just that. He raised his hand and knocked on the door. After a moment, a voice, muffled by the worn out wood, responded to him.<p>

"Who's there?" The voice sounded hostile. Dash didn't know why he had expected any different.

"Uhm…Dash Baxter?" Realizing that that would probably get him nowhere, he added "I got a note to come here."

There was a long stretch of silence before the voice responded, and Dash realized that it was female, though slightly deep, "slip the note under the door." Dash did so. He heard the faint sound of unfolding paper, and then a frustrated mutter of something he was sure was obscene.

"Wait there," footsteps were heard, growing fainter as the girl walked farther away. After a moment of silence, a loud shouting match began.

Valerie Gray looked at the note, feeling like it was the final straw.

"Sam!" She called angrily. A raven-haired, violet-eyed girl came from around the corner, saw the note in Valerie's hands, and began to back away.

"Get over here," Valerie growled. Sam's eyes narrowed, not liking the idea of being chastised by someone the same age as her.

"What is this?" Valerie shoved the note in Sam's face.

"A note."

"No shit," Valerie hissed, "a guy brought it here. It's in _your_ handwriting, with _your_ initials, Manson. I thought we agreed you would stop doing this."

"No, you, Tucker, and the others agreed that I _should_ stop doing it," Sam pointed out, "I never agreed to stop."

Valerie rolled her eyes, "you can't just keep recruiting people off the street to support your cause, Sam. I know it's important to you, but this isn't the way to do it."

"Why not? No one else is helping, and it's my fault anyway," Sam's gaze turned distant, and she cringed at a painful memory, "if you're not involved, why do you care?"

"We can't just have people coming in here! Any one of them could be working for Vlad."

Sam chose to ignore this, "where is the guy?"

"Outside."

"Well let him in, then!"

"You do it," Valerie countered, "I need to talk to Tucker, maybe he knows a way to get you to do what you're told."

Sam walked to the door, muttering 'fat chance' under her breath. She opened the beaten up door to find the burly guy that she had found unconscious earlier. She could tell that he was wondering about everything he had heard and seen, even staring at her outfit (admittedly it was a little strange – the black and purple corset she wore had obviously been part of a gown, but the skirt had been torn away when she was on one of her little 'adventures,' leaving only tattered remains of it, so she wore black shorts beneath it and clunky boots that didn't at all match what she was wearing.) She stepped aside to let him enter, trying to figure out what to say.

"I'm sure you're wondering why you're here," Sam began, "well, I mean, why you're _here_, as in, this place. Our hideout. As for why you're in Solidus, I have no idea. I just found you. You're in our hideout because it's safer in here and I figured, you know, you look strong, maybe you could help me out with something."

Dash gestured for her to go on, sitting on a worn out couch from which a cloud of dust exploded due to the added weight. The girl looked thoughtful, as if trying to sort things out in her head before speaking again.

"I need you to bear with me, because this story doesn't exactly paint me in a very positive light," she sighed, "first negative thing – this happened when me and some of my friends were looting a shop."

Dash winced. He'd been brought into a crime ring? Figures.

"Hey, don't look at me like that – you do what you gotta do around here. Anyway," Sam continued, noticing his expression, "we were getting food and money, and, well…" Sam took a deep breath, "first, you need to know that Vlad Masters has everything in this place under serious surveillance, so you need to avoid all security cameras and traps if you don't want to get in some serious trouble. If you trip one of the security alarms, he sends his goons out to capture you – dead or alive. If you're lucky, you get taken to Claustrum.

"Claustrum is a prison in the center of the city. Basically, a couple of my friends are probably in there because I wasn't careful and stepped right in a security camera's line of sight. They got captured instead of killed, which is more than I could hope for..." Sam clenched her fists, her eyes full of a self-loathing Dash had never seen before, "I plan to go to Claustrum, but my weapons can only get me so far. I need an escort. Somebody people don't want to mess with. You look like that kinda guy."

Dash was torn. On one hand, this was a situation that could possibly kill him, but on the other, he felt sorry for this girl, and it did sound exciting. Also, she was kinda hot.

"What kind of weapons you got?" He asked coolly.

Her face lit up, but she didn't exactly smile, "so you'll do it?"

"If," her face fell when she realized Dash was going to ask her for a favor, "you tell me about this place and eventually get me out of here."

"I'll try…" Sam said, which was as close to promising as was possible, "I don't know much more about your situation than you do. I'll tell you everything I know about this place, though." She paused for a moment, "I never told you my name, did I?"

"Sam," Dash finished for her, "I, uhm, heard your friend yelling at you."

"I wouldn't say she's my friend," Sam muttered, "but her boyfriend is, so I tolerate her."

"Exactly how many people are here?"

"Well, now that we're missing three, eight. We're sort of resistance against Vlad, our only goal is to get out of here – if you help me, you'll get what you want."

"Who is this Vlad guy?" Sam sighed at his words.

"It's a long story…"

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><p><strong><strong>It is.<strong>**

**Sam done fucked up :B  
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**I know what I'm doing, I swear. Trust me, I'm a writer.***

**...**

***never trust a writer**


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